For Real This Time
by ThirstyDamsel
Summary: *MISAO fanfic* Aki makes a deal with Mr. Onigawara that enables her to go back to before the murder took place in an attempt to save everyone from Misao's curse. Can she break the cycle, or will history simply repeat itself? (Wow, I think I broke FanFiction! :o There is no Misao category?)
1. Chapter 1

Aki stood her ground, staring resolutely into Mr. Onigawara's flame red eyes. He sighed, breaking her gaze but maintaining his composure. "I've told you-it simply isn't possible."

"Bullshit," Aki countered, eyes narrowing accusingly. "If you have the power to drop an entire school into another dimension, reroute a curse and project the past then you have enough power to take us all back to before this whole mess began. Everyone has been through so much, if you gave them a second chance I'm sure they could change!"

Oni turned his gaze away as though he were considering it before casting her a rueful look. "Even Hideki Sohta?" Aki's gaze faltered for a moment as the glow from her teacher's solitary grave flickered in the darkness. "Everyone."

Mr. Onigawara smirked at the girls blatant naiveté, walking back and forth over the swampy ground, a squelch resounding with every step. "Who's to say history will not simply repeat itself? You will be faced with a very delicate situation. No one else will be aware of the events that lead you to this moment. All will be as it had been before Misao was murdered. She may simply be murdered again, under the same circumstances." Aki balled her hands into fists at her sides. "I won't let that happen." Oni stopped his restless pacing in order to give the girl another condescending look. "_You_?"

Aki's eyes practically melted her contacts. "Let's make a wager then, if you're so certain I'll fail." Oni started pacing again, stifling a bored yawn with the back of his hand. "Oh?" he drawled lazily. "If I lose I have to stay in this dimension with you."

Onigawara didn't even blink. "A servant I have. I see nothing to be gained in this venture." "Really?" Aki pressed, determined not to let her resolve slacken. "Because the way I see it, it's a win-win situation for you. If I lose you'll gain a servant, but even if I win at least you'll be entertained for a little while, right? It's got to be awfully boring being stuck here with nothing to do."

Oni sighed again. "Oh, very well," he consented. "But let's up the stakes a little, shall we?"

The relief that had been building in Aki's chest lodged uncomfortably in her stomach. Oni's eyes glistened malevolently, seeming to mirror the eerie glow coming from the tombstones. "Your failure will cost you not only your own freedom but those of any and all descendants you might have. After all," his grin widened. "The human lifespan is extremely…limited." Aki gulped. "Seems fair."

"Then we have an accord." Oni chuckled darkly as the red glow from the tombstones grew to blinding and then suddenly died all at once, leaving them in total darkness.

Aki sat up in bed with a start, trying to get her bearings as her eyes readjusted to the dark. The glow from her digital clock told her it was March 14th, 2:13 AM-exactly one week before Misao went missing. "I've really gone back…" Aki murmured incredulously. As realization dawned on her that her bet with Onigawara had not been a dream, a lump formed in her throat making it difficult to swallow. "It's a little late for me to worry about this plan now," she said to no one in particular.

She rolled over on her side, determined to save her strength for the task ahead. But try as she may Aki's nerves kept her up, tossing and turning as the threat of tomorrow loomed over her head like a guillotine. Despite her one-manned attempts to push back the night, the sun rose ignorant of her plight.

Far less confident than she had been the day before (or rather that one day that was now erased from everyone's history but her own weeks in the future) Aki dressed for school with a heavy heart and then trudged downstairs for breakfast.

As she slowly nibbled on her toast the energy she had expended thrashing around the night before gradually returned to her and with it her positive outlook. It was far too early to give up yet!

Taking a pen out of her school bag she sketched out a rough diagram on her napkin. These events revolved around Misao, so as expected Aki drew a large circle encompassing her name with three lines falling downwards from that focal point. Aki scribbled names at the end of each line, addressing the issues that had to be resolved in order for everyone to survive the aftermath of the next few days.

Done with the initial sketch, Aki eyed the first name on her list: Yoshino. She would be easy enough to deal with. Aki had dealt with her kind before in the past. If she'd have known that this kind of thing was going on she would have ended it a long time ago.

The next name on the list was Tohma. After a few seconds consideration Aki extended the line and wrote "Saotome" underneath it. She may not have been specifically involved in the incident, but she still became a victim of her boyfriend's heartless behaviour. Aki had to find a way to convince Misao that Tohma was bad news before he broke her heart again. There were at least two ways she could accomplish this: by shutting Tohma up before his fake confession could take place or by finding someone else Misao could get romantically involved with. Aki snapped her fingers in a moment of revelation and wrote yet another name on the same thread. Kudoh! She remembered when he had conveyed his true feelings for Misao on the other side and smiled for the first time that morning. He was a much better match for her than that deceitful creep. In the best case scenario, Aki would just have to get them to reconcile. Of course she was going to chew Kudoh out for not standing up for Misao when she needed him most, but although Misao had wanted Kudoh to shield her from bullying Aki figured it would turn out better if she dealt with Yoshino and Tohma herself and did not get Kudoh personally involved in reforming the bullies. Aki pouted a little bit, crossing her arms as she grumbled, "I wish Oni had given me some magic powers or something to make them do what I say." After a minute she sighed and let her arms drop to her sides. Even if she magically wished everything better that didn't mean anything would change. She had committed herself to improving their situation, and that meant she was ready to roll up her sleeves and help out as best she could.

Aki hesitated as she read the last name on her list. Out of everyone, he was the one she was the most concerned about. She wasn't sure where she could even begin to remedy all the pain and suffering surrounding that one individual. Before she realized what she was doing Aki had formed a thick, deep groove encircling the last name: Hideki Sohta. Her scrawling doodle looked far more menacing now than it had a minute ago, but taking a brief glance at the clock, Aki folded the napkin and shoved it into her pocket. She wouldn't linger on that dark spot bleeding through the napkin like a death sentence, but she did have to admit: she had her work cut out for her.

***AUTHOR'S COMMENTS***

Heeeeeeeeeey everyone! Super excited to have finally started this fic. Although I'm not too sure about how other people feel about some Aki x Sohta action… ^ ^; *MANS THE BATTLEMENTS OF HER SHIPPING FORTRESS* D: "TO ARMS-!"


	2. Chapter 2

When Aki arrived at school it almost struck her as odd to see that it had returned to its natural un-chaotic state. The graves and ritual altar were gone, and the grounds were miraculously ghoul-free. As she was scanning the schoolyard with her eyes she sought out her classmates but when she didn't see them she decided to head straight to their homeroom.

Merely biding her time at her desk, Aki watched as her classmates slowly drifted to their seats in bunches, nonsensical laughter drifting overhead like a heat wave. Stifling. Aki drummed her fingers on her desk impatiently. She didn't like all this waiting around. Picking up her pencil she twirled it absently between her fingers fumbling and dropping it when she heard a very loud "HEY AKI!" from beside her.

Aki jerked her head up in alarm to see her best friend Ayaka looming over her, a sour expression on her face. "Oh. Hey, Aya." Taking a seat on the edge of her desk, Ayaka folded her arms over her shapely chest, still cross. "Geez, you're so out of it today. I had to call you like fifteen times to get your attention."

Aki supressed the urge to roll her eyes and smiled apologetically at her friend. Ayaka had always had a penchant for exaggeration. Despite the scolding she was getting, Aki had to admit that it was nice to see Ayaka back in one piece.

Hearing snickering over Ayaka's shoulder, Aki's face darkened as she saw Yoshino and her little posse saunter past Misao's desk, condescending smirks plastered on their faces. Misao squirmed uncomfortably in her seat, her eyes cast down at her feet. Aki gritted her teeth in annoyance, but just as she was rising to her feet the bell brought her back to her senses.

As if waiting on cue for the bell to ring, the door slid open issuing a dramatic sigh from Ayaka. "Just look at him," she commanded in a dreamy whisper. "How can anyone be that perfect?"

Aki inwardly groaned when she saw their teacher take his place at the head of the class. How could she have forgotten Ayaka's massive crush on Mr. Sohta? "I don't think he's right for you…" Aki whispered feverishly. Ayaka merely shrugged. "A girl can dream…"

After doing the traditional rise and bow greeting, Mr. Sohta cleared his throat and said: "Listen up class! Today we are going to begin by doing something a little different. I'd like everyone to get into pairs for a personality test."

"That's Mr. Sohta for you," Ayaka beamed in appreciation. "Sounds like fun, huh Aki?...Um, Aki?" Ayaka's head swivelled madly around looking for her friend but Aki had someone else in mind. Misao was still sitting in the same position: head down, eyes staring dejectedly at her hands. As such she missed the conflicted look Kudoh was giving her, although it did not escape Aki's notice.

After a moment of awkward silence Aki cleared her throat causing Misao to look up in alarm. Aki smiled at her as kindly as she could. It was time to start making a difference. "Mind if we pair up?" Misao's eyes widened further. "N-not at all," she managed, gesturing to an empty seat beside her.

"Great!" Aki eagerly took a seat, flashing Misao another toothy grin to which she responded shyly with a softer grin of her own. "So, what's the first question?" Aki said, ready to settle down to business. "U-um..." Misao stammered, flipping through the tiny booklet. "Favourite colour."

"That's an easy one! Red for me." "Mmm," Misao nodded, trailing her finger down the page. "Let's see…it says you are very passionate and energetic. You hate standing still, and as such you love taking action to improve your situation. You stand firm in your beliefs and have the ability to lead others. However, you have a fiery temper and often let your emotions rule over your logic." Aki nodded as Misao read out her answer. "Yeah that sounds about right…how about you, Misao?"

"Oh, m-me?" Misao mumbled as though the question were unexpected. "W-well…I guess mine would be blue." "Hmm, let's see…" Aki said, flipping the booklet over so she could read it. "Yours says that you are aware of your surroundings and are very perspective. Although you generally do not voice your opinions aloud, others are impressed by your calm and collected disposition. You possess a great inner strength and treat others kindly." "Oh…" Misao breathed. Aki looked over to see that her face had fallen. "I don't think that sounds like me. I'm nothing so impressive."

Aki frowned. "You should have more confidence in yourself! Remember that time you nursed that injured bird back to health? Everyone else walked right on by, but you were the one that noticed it and took care of it. No one else thought to do that!" Misao blushed. "I didn't know anyone noticed…" "Actually," Aki confessed, "I've been hoping to talk to you for quite some time now." Misao blinked. "With me!? R-really?" Aki nodded. "You seem like a really sweet girl, and I'd love to get to know you better. If you don't mind, let's become friends!" Misao blinked again as though she hadn't heard her, but as Aki's words sank in she seemed to light up all at once. "Of course!"

The next half hour passed in a pleasant blur. But Aki found that after she returned to her seat the bright, cheerful Misao that had surfaced during the personality test was overshadowed by her sad, ghostlike shell.

"Thanks a lot for abandoning me back there," Ayaka grumped as she too had returned to her seat. "Because of you I was stuck with that creep Tohma." She shuddered as though she found the very thought of him repulsive. "He may be attractive, but he doesn't measure up to even half of the man that Mr. Sohta is."

Once more, Aki found herself struggling the urge to roll her eyes at her best friend. If only Ayaka knew Mr. Sohta wasn't as perfect as he seemed to be. Aki frowned, noticing something odd in what Ayaka had said. "Hang on. Why wasn't Tohma paired up with Saotome like he usually is?"

Ayaka pouted. "Weren't you listening? Saotome is off sick today. Of course Tohma thinks that means he's off the hook and isn't wasting the opportunity to check out the other girls in class." "Oh?" Aki grinned wickedly as yet another opportunity presented itself. "Um, Aki?" Ayaka squirmed uncomfortably in her seat. "Can you stop smiling like that? It's kind of freaking me out."

As soon as their break began Aki lost no time making her way straight to Tohma's desk where he and a few buddies were not-so-discreetly checking out a pervy magazine. "Her? Meh, she's not too bad, but I prefer a girl with a little more meat on her-in the right places of course." Noticing Aki stand behind them with a slightly menacing aura, one of the guys elbowed Tohma in the ribs.

It was painfully obvious that Aki was forcing a smile when she said: "Hey, can I talk to you for a sec? Great, thanks!" Not waiting for an answer, she dragged Tohma from the room and thrust him into a nearby washroom, locking the door behind them. "What the-!?"

Regaining his balance Tohma turned to watch Aki check the stalls one by one to make sure they had their privacy. Incredulity fading, Tohma arrived at what he felt could be the only possible conclusion. "Coming on to me, eh? Can't say as I blame you. This situation is pretty hot, but regretfully I'm taken. However, I wouldn't mind making an exception for you…"

Aki snorted. How had she ever found him even remotely attractive? "Listen up, because I'm only going to say this once," she growled, forcing Tohma into a corner and slamming her hands on the wall beside his head. "Stay away from Misao." Tohma grunted. "Why the hell would I go near her in the first place?" Aki shrugged. "For fun? Some sick prank? I don't care. If you so much as talk badly about her to any of your sleazy little friends you'll have to answer to me."

Looking into her eyes Tohma saw she was dead serious and as much as he hated to admit it, he felt more than a little intimidated. Ducking under her arm, Tohma backed away slowly as though she were some kind of wild animal. When he got as far as the door his confidence returned to him. "Whatever you say, babe," he said with a wink, fumbling with the lock and hightailing it out of the bathroom before Aki could say another word.

Sighing, Aki shook her head. Had she really gotten through to him? It was too soon to say. She just hoped it would be enough.

***AUTHOR'S NOTES***

I hope you like it so far! (^w^;) I am not adverse to Aki x Misao, and looking back on this chapter fans of that ship might be happy with it…This may turn out to be my longest fanfic to date, because there is still no quantitative amounts of Aki Sohta! ( ﾟДﾟ) I have determined that no matter how bad a particular fic might be, I'm going to post what I do write instead of merely throwing it away because if I don't I'll never improve, so any comments you have to spare would be useful! Just be gentle with me~ (Please. TT^TT) Until next time!

Just another quick thing: if you DON'T like Aki x Sohta just don't read it, okay? (Don't really know why I have to tell you this, it should be pretty easy to figure out…(-_-#) Any flaming or non-constructive banter will be ignored or deleted.


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